Snowball

=Snowball Introductions= Kasandra Singh

Purpose
This activity is designed to introduce people to eachother at the start of a class. The game was taken from a similar activity describes in the TRIBES program by Jeanne Gibbs. The original activity can be viewed here: [|Snowball.pdf] The game can also be modified to serve other purposes. A few of those are listed here:


 * Alternate Purpose of the Game**       ||        **Modification Description** ||
 * To demonstrate the writing trait of Voice   || Have students write a descriptive paragraph about an assigned topic. Crumple papers and do snowball fight. Open papers and try to guess who wrote each piece based on the style of writing.||
 * To demonstrate Point of View     ||Write a short story summary while pretending to be assigned characters from a given book.  Crumple papers and do snowball fight. Open papers and try to guess who the character was according the views expressed in the writing. ||
 * To assign groups                          ||Make snowball papers by writing down a group name/number. Do a snowball fight with these papers crumpled up. Students will open papers and see which group he/she has.  ||

Time Required
This game is estimated to take as long as 20-25 minutes maximum.

Number of Participants
Put a mimimum, maximum and optimal number. This activity is designed for a larger group, optimally a typical classroom of around 20-25 students. The minimum number of participants would be three. The maximum would be 30 students.

Supplies Needed
Paper [|Snowball Questions.doc] Template

Preparation
Copies of the template and pencils for the students are the only materials needed.

Introduction
Here is an example of what an instructor may say to introduce the activity: "You may or may not know some or all of the people in this class already. I'd like us to take some time to get to know each other in a somewhat unusual way: with a snowball fight. Please fill out the "Snowball Questions" paper and then crumple it up into a snowball. We will toss the snowballs and have our snowball fight. When we've finished, you will have someone else's snowball in your hand and will read it to the class, one at a time. Read everything but the name. We will then try to guess who's snowball you have. When someone in the class has correctly guessed who it is, we will all have learned something new and interesting about the person who has made the snowball."

Process
1. Introduce the activity. Use the script provided. (2 minutes) 2. Pass out "Snowball Questions" template to students. (1 minute) 3. Students fill in the Snowball Questions worksheet on their own. (5 minutes) 4. Crumple up papers to look like snowballs. Set the timer for 2 minutes and allow students to have a "snowball fight" with the papers. (3 minutes) 5. Call time after the two minutes are up. Then students take one snowball and each person reads their snowball. (2 minutes) 6. Students read their snowballs. Other students try to guess who wrote which snowball. 7. Conclusion: How many snowballs were guessed correctly? How did you know whose snowball belonged to whom? (Optional: Results can be graphed.) What did you learn about the other people in this class.

Debrief
1. Name one thing you learned about a single classmate. 2. Is there anything new you learned about people you already knew before class? 3. What hints did you use to guess whose snowball belonged to whom? 4. Do you notice any pattern in the people's answers? (Example: is there something most people like or most disliked?

Credits
Gibbs, Jeanne. (2001). TRIBES: A new way of learning and being together. Sausalito, CA, USA.